Apple is reportedly working on a new version of its popular AirPods product.
According to a report from DigiTimes, Apple is working with its supply chain partners to discuss the potential of AirPods Pro Lite, alongside new iMacs, iPads, and Apple Watches.
Though the report offers little details on what the AirPods Pro Lite could be, it appears as though the company is looking to diversify its supply chain to reduce the impact of the ongoing coronavirus epidemic in China.
Several of Apple’s suppliers have had to close their production lines, and that is expected to hit the Cupertino company financially this quarter.
The DigiTimes report reads: “Apple, maintaining partnerships with supply chains in both Taiwan and China, may have its Taiwanese partners handle more production of new-generation iPad, Apple Watch, AirPod Pro Lite and iMac devices to be released later, as the epidemic has raised risks of raw materials supply shortages and shipments disruptions arising from uncertain resumption of normal operations at components suppliers and assembly plants in China.”
Apple launched the second-generation of its AirPods in early 2019 and followed them up with a Pro version in October.
At present, the regular AirPods cost $199 and the Pro versions cost $249, so it’s unknown how a “Lite” version would sit alongside the current AirPods lineup, or what features they would (or wouldn’t) include to keep their costs low.
Although DigiTimes has a unique insight into Apple’s production cycles and supply chains, the organization has had some misses, so it could be that AirPods Pro Lite is actually just the code name for the next-generation version of Apple’s standard AirPods headphones.
What are your thoughts on this story? Would you like to see Apple release a budget version of its popular AirPods Pro product? Let us know on social media and check back soon for more news and rumors.
